


Raiders of the Lost Empire

by barbitone



Series: Voltron Fanfiction [13]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, BAMF! Lotor, Banter, Bathing/Washing, Bottom Shiro (Voltron), Emperor Lotor (Voltron), Flirting, Humor, Identity Reveal, Light Bondage, Lotor (Voltron) Being an Asshole, M/M, Mistaken Identity, Morally Ambiguous Character, Morally Ambiguous Lotor, Non-Sexual Bondage, Oral Sex, POV Shiro (Voltron), Prisoner!Shiro, Rescues, Top Lotor (Voltron), but like in a nice way, terms of endearment, the journey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-19
Packaged: 2019-09-22 13:10:47
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 17,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17060393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/barbitone/pseuds/barbitone
Summary: Shiro escapes from the Galra the second time around only to be captured by rebels. That lasts all of a few hours before a stranger named Lotor shows up and takes Shiro for himself.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to my lovely beta [Lutz](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lutz/pseuds/lutz)\- your support is hugely appreciated!
> 
> (Why yes the title is a blatant rip off of Indiana Jones.)
> 
> I'll be updating tags as I go- Please enjoy the fic and comment <3

 

* * *

 

The good news was that he wasn’t dead.

The bad news was that he was hanging from the ceiling by his wrists in a dark storage room and everything _hurt_.

Shiro winced, trying to wriggle his fingers. His body was mostly numb but at least everything seemed to be attached as it should be and working well enough. He tried to activate his Galra arm to break free of the restraints but it was no use, there was something blocking him. After a brief examination he realized it was an armband around his metal appendage, the indicator light blinking slowly.

Right. Ok.

He tried to lean closer to pull it off with his teeth but he couldn’t quite manage it. Maybe he could swing his body to try and pull himself off the hook- but at the first try he nearly screamed in pain from his ravaged thigh and his tired aching shoulders.

Fuck.

He stilled, breathing hard as he tried to figure out his next steps. He could hear his captors arguing in the other room but their voices were muffled and indistinct. They’d have to come in here eventually and then he could talk to them, try and convince them to let him go.

He hung there for a while and then there was a different sound- yelling and a few loud thumps. He perked up, staring into the darkness. For a while nothing happened, and then the door opened.

Shiro winced against the light, staring at the silhouette of a tall man standing in the doorway.

“Oh,” the man said in surprise. He flicked a switch, turning the light on, and stepped closer. “This is quite unexpected.”

Shiro’s eyes had adjusted by then and he looked down at the tall stranger. He was almost human looking other than his purple skin and long white hair, pulled back into a high ponytail at the back of his head. There was a bloody scrape high on his forehead and he was wearing a heavy coat. He seemed a little ragged, his clothes were old and patched and his hair greasy. He was heavily armed with a sword and at least one dagger on his belt, plus a blaster holstered at each thigh.

As he stepped closer Shiro found himself oddly fixated on the gold hoops dangling from the lobes of his pointed ears.

“What sort of alien are you?” the stranger asked, stepping closer to take Shiro’s chin in his hot fingers and tilting his face to get a better look at him.

“I’m a human,” he said slowly, his voice coming out in a raspy whisper.

“Huh,” the stranger said.

“Help me,” Shiro tried. “I was trying to get home when I was captured.”

“I’m just here to steal a ship and some supplies,” the stranger said, stepping back. “I don’t generally make a point of getting involved in these sorts of situations. Besides- I can tell by your physique you’re a fighter. You seem like more trouble than I’d care to deal with.”

“Please!” Shiro said. “I won’t give you any trouble- just free me and I’ll be on my way. That’s all I ask.”

“Hmm,” the stranger said, looking at him oddly. “That arm of yours- it’s Galra technology, isn’t it? The witch’s work?”

Shiro gritted his teeth, uncertain how to reply.

“I think so,” the stranger said, grinning widely in a way that revealed his sharp canines. “Perhaps I’ll take you with me after all. I think you could be of use to me.”

He stepped forward and cut Shiro’s bonds, sending him tumbling to the ground with a cry. Shiro huddled on the ground, unsure if he should be happy or worried as he tried to rub some feeling back into his limbs.

“What’s your name?” he asked as the stranger poked around the storage room, picking a few items here and there to shove into his satchel and pockets.

“Lotor,” he said easily and turned back to Shiro.

Before Shiro could react Lotor was tightening bulky shackles over his wrists and yanking him to his feet.

“Come along, darling,” Lotor said with a grin.

“Wait,” Shiro tried as the man shoved him onwards. “Wait! I need to get back to my team, I need to-”

“Quiet, now,” Lotor interrupted. “I don’t much care for what you need, we haven’t any time to waste.”

“ _Please!_ ” Shiro tried but Lotor just ignored him, dragging him onwards towards a shuttle docked in the base’s hangar. “Please- my name is Shiro, I have people depending on me, friends waiting for me to return. They need me- please-”

“That won’t work,” Lotor said with a grin. “But it’s an admirable effort. Now- quiet down for me or I’ll have to gag you.”

Shiro scowled and shut his mouth, letting Lotor pull him along into the shuttle’s cargo hold.

“Sit,” Lotor said, shoving him down to sit against the wall. He whistled sharply and the shackles activated with a whine. Shiro gasped as his wrists were pulled to the metal wall and stuck there with a loud clang. “Take it easy,” Lotor said. “Have yourself a nap.”

“Where are you taking me?” Shiro asked, watching as Lotor took off his coat and stepped closer. He flinched but the man just draped the coat over him, still warm from his body.

“What do you care? As far as you’re concerned your situation hasn’t changed- you were a prisoner before and you’re a prisoner now. Don’t make such a fuss.”

The door to the cargo hold closed and Lotor headed for the cockpit, leaving Shiro alone again. He closed his eyes and drew his legs up, careful not to dislodge the coat. It was thick and warm, if slightly musty, and at least Shiro was sitting now, the pressure off his shoulders at last. This was the most comfortable he’d been since he’d been recaptured by the Galra, and as the engines engaged with a quiet hum he couldn’t help being lulled into a fitful sleep.

He woke later to the sound of footsteps- Lotor was back. He’d found a long hooded jacket at some point to replace the coat he’d given to Shiro, and he’d washed his face.

“You’re quite a mess, aren’t you?” he murmured, crouching in front of Shiro and reaching out to gently brush his long hair out of his eyes. “Here,” he said, pushing a bottle towards him.

“What is that?” Shiro asked suspiciously.

“Water, darling. Unless you’re not thirsty?”

Shiro licked his dry lips helplessly.

“I thought so,” Lotor said, smiling as he brought the bottle to his mouth, tipping it slowly so Shiro could drink. Shiro closed his eyes as he drank greedily, the cold water suddenly the most delicious thing he’d ever tasted. “Easy, darling,” Lotor said, pulling away slowly.

“I have a name,” Shiro said, panting. “My name is Shiro- I need to get home. I need to get back to my friends, my team. They’re looking for me, they’re worried. I need to get back, please- you have to help me.”

“Not this again,” Lotor said, rolling his eyes. “I know what you’re doing- trying to get me to sympathise with you so I end up giving you what you want. Alas, I’m not a complete amateur. Here you are, darling,” he said, bringing the bottle back up.

Shiro drank again, staring at him this time.

“I’m not going to use your name,” Lotor murmured, “because I don’t make a habit of naming my prisoners. Wouldn’t do to get attached, would it. But luckily for you, I have no intentions of killing or hurting you. So- _darling_ ,” he smirked, pulling the now empty bottle away and screwing the top back on. “Be a good boy and shut the fuck up. Do as you’re told and we won’t have any issues.”

Shiro frowned but stopped talking all the same.

“That’s better,” Lotor said, patting him on the side of the face gently. “No need to be so sour, once I’m finished with you I’ll let you go and you can do whatever you like- find your friends, whatever. Now- are you hurt? I saw your thigh, I don’t think I can do much for you there. Are you hurt anywhere else?”

Shiro shook his head.

“No lying, now,” Lotor said with a frown.

“I’m not hurt,” Shiro said slowly. “Just- tired and sore.”

“Well, that’s all very manageable. I’ve found some living quarters, you can get a bit of sleep in a decent cot. Come along.” He whistled as he stood and the cuffs disengaged from the wall.

Shiro let his hands drop with a groan, trying to roll his shoulders to ease some of the soreness out of them. “You don’t have to keep me shackled,” he muttered as he fought to stand up, shivering as the coat fell away and he was suddenly cold. “I’m not going to try anything.”

“I’m sure you’re very trustworthy,” Lotor said, bending to pick up the coat before draping it over Shiro’s shoulders. “But I’m not so much of an idiot I’d let a stranger run around unattended, especially a stranger like you. You’re wearing a Galra prison jumpsuit, so clearly you’re not entirely harmless. Come along.”

Shiro followed Lotor through the small ship to a tiny bedroom, empty except for a narrow cot, a table, and a bathroom.

“Here you are,” Lotor said. “There are rations in the coat, I don’t know if they’ll be compatible with your human biology but there isn’t anything else so feel free to take your chances. I won’t shackle you to the wall as a gesture of good faith- but don’t try to leave the room or else we’ll have a problem. Understand?”

“Yeah,” Shiro said.

“Sleep tight, darling,” Lotor said with a wink and left.

“Thanks,” Shiro muttered into the empty room, sitting down on the cot to examine the cuffs. There was nothing for it- he couldn’t break them or slip them off. The armband keeping his Galra arm from turning on was a no go either. He sighed and leaned his back against the wall, blinking up at the ceiling for a few long moments.

Despite everything, he still wasn’t sure exactly how fucked he was. Lotor seemed- strange. Unreadable. He didn’t seem needlessly cruel or malicious, but Shiro had no doubt the alien would kill him without thinking twice. But he’d said he would let Shiro go once he was finished with him- whatever that meant. What he telling the truth or was that just a lie to keep him complaisant?

Shiro awkwardly rooted through the pockets of the coat. He found something like a packaged energy bar and opened it, trying it cautiously. It didn’t taste like much but he ate it ravenously before searching for another. Once his hunger was sated he made his way into the bathroom, washing his hands and face and doing his best to rinse the wound on his thigh.

He curled up on the cot after, huddling under Lotor’s coat, and managed to fall asleep surprisingly easily.

He wasn’t sure how much time passed when he was woken up by the ship jerking and the lights stuttering out. An alarm blared out and he looked up fearfully. The ship shook again and Shiro yelled in shock as he was thrown against the wall, scrambling desperately for anything to hold on to.

The cot was screwed to the wall and he rolled underneath it, trying to hold on to anything within reach. That was the only thing that saved him from being thrown to the ceiling when the ship jerked and rolled with the hideous sound of crunching metal- they’d crash landed.

Shiro screwed his eyes shut, breathing hard as he waited for his heartbeat to slow. The ship had come to a stop, the engine noise was gone and everything smelled faintly of smoke. He got to his feet unsteadily, grabbing the coat before slowly making his way to the door and out into the hall. It was dark except for a few flashing emergency lights. He needed to find out what had happened, he needed to get out.

He was still shackled but he could figure that problem out later, first he needed to just _go_. Despite the darkness he could still vaguely remember the path they’d taken from the cargo hold and he made his way back slowly, keeping his hands on the wall to steady himself.

One of the doors opened, letting a cloud of smoke into the hall as Lotor stumbled out, coughing.

“Piece of _shit_!” he cursed. “Should have known those clowns wouldn’t maintain-” he broke off as he saw Shiro staring at him. “You’re still alive then. Come along, I’m worried this heap of crap may explode.”

He took Shiro by the arm and yanked him onwards. The side of the cargo bay was blown out and the contents strewn about haphazardly.

“Wait for me outside,” Lotor said, shoving Shiro towards the hole.

Shiro blinked as he stepped out of the ship, looking around to see they were in some kind of forest. It was night time but it wasn’t completely dark- the trees surrounding them were thin and ropy, glowing with a faint inner light. Lotor was still cursing up a storm as he did something in the cargo hold and Shiro wondered if maybe he should make a run for it.

Something held him back though. Even if Lotor didn’t catch him, which was doubtful, Shiro would end up alone on an alien planet in the middle of nowhere. He’d already been in that situation not too long ago and nearly died, he had no desire to throw himself into that kind of peril all over again. Despite everything, his chances were better staying with Lotor and trying to look for an opportunity to escape later on.

“Fucking finally,” Lotor said faintly from the ship just as Shiro heard a growl out of the darkness.

He turned nervously, peering into the distance. A branch snapped far away and he flinched, backing up towards the ship.

The growl came again, low and rumbling, and then there was another off to the side, and another. Suddenly the forest seemed alive with it and a cold shiver ran down Shiro’s spine. “Lotor?” he called out nervously but there was no answer.

As he squinted he could just make out lights in the distance, red and ominous. More and more appeared, dozens of them glaring at him out of the darkness, and then they all _blinked_.

“Lotor!” Shiro cried out, louder now.

“What is it?” he asked, struggling to maneuver a hoverbike out of the wreckage. “Oh hell,” he said flatly when he saw the eyes glaring at them.

“What are those things?” Shiro asked, stepping closer to him.

“Trouble,” Lotor said, drawing his sword with one hand and a blaster with the other.

The first of the creatures stalked closer and finally Shiro could make out the shape of it. It was a huge lizard, somewhere between a wolf and a horse in size. It was covered in pointed scales and scented the air with a long forked tongue that glistened wetly.

“Release me,” Shiro said. “I can help.”

“I don’t think so,” Lotor said. “Just get behind me and try not to get eaten.”

“Lotor-” Shiro said, but then the first creature lunged.

Lotor shot it in the face with the blaster but it just kept coming, snarling as it opened its maw wide.

“Damn,” he said, holstering the blaster and raising his sword. The creature leaped and he ducked under it, turning his sword up to gut it as it passed. The creature’s belly opened easily for his blade, spilling dark blood and gore all over him. “Ugh! For fuck’s sake!” he groaned, already rising to his feet to take on three more.

A fourth stalked around the battle to come at Shiro, still standing with his back to the smoldering shuttle.

“Lotor-” Shiro called out nervously.

“A little occupied here, darling!” he yelled back. He’d killed the three creatures but there were already more coming for him, and still there were eyes shining in the darkness.

“ _Lotor_!” Shiro screamed.

A whistle rang out through the night and Shiro’s cuffs sprang apart. He didn’t waste any time, using one of the shackles to smash the armband before activating his Galra arm. The creature stalking him reared back in fear at the sudden bright light, hissing. Shiro lunged forward, hitting it in the jaw and sending it flying into the woods.

He considered running again then, but Lotor was struggling in the midst of a dozen of the lizard things, just barely managing to keep them at bay, and Shiro strode towards him instead. He grabbed one of the creatures by the tail to throw it away into the forest and then he was in the middle of it, fighting them with Lotor at his back.

They must have killed at least twenty before they stopped coming, the ones that remained finally deciding they were more trouble than they were worth. Shiro stared into the darkness, breathing hard as the eyes slipped away.

“Ugh,” Lotor said, wiping viscous black blood off his sword on his pant leg before slipping it back into the sheath at his belt. He pushed a strand of hair off his forehead, smearing blood over his face.

“You have something-” Shiro said, pointing, and broke off as he stared. Lotor was filthy with gore _everywhere_.

Lotor scowled and pursed his lips, ready to whistle.

“Don’t!” Shiro cried out. “I helped you, didn’t I? Just- leave me untied.”

“You’ve just proven yourself a formidable fighter and a potential threat,” Lotor said, setting his hands on his hips while he glared. “And yet you expect me to let you run around freely?”

“I promise I’m not going to try anything,” Shiro insisted. “We’re trapped here together now, I don’t think I’d get very far without you.”

“Well, that much is certainly true,” Lotor said thoughtfully. “Fine,” he said at last. “Be a good boy for me and I’ll leave your hands free. For now, at least.”

“My name is _Shiro_ ,” Shiro said, frowning.

“Whatever,” Lotor muttered, pulling out his dagger as he knelt beside one of the carcasses, carving into the dead beast’s side.

“What are you doing?” Shiro asked in disgust.

“Taking care of dinner for us. I haven’t had fresh meat in phoebs.”

“Do you even know if they’re edible?” Shiro asked. The beast’s flesh was so dark it was practically black, glistening as Lotor cut a huge hunk of it before stuffing it haphazardly into his satchel.

“Anything’s edible if you cook it long enough.”

“Is that sanitary?” Shiro asked, frowning at the satchel.

Lotor looked up at him with a withering glare. “You’re the fussiest prisoner I’ve ever met. Is that why the Galra dumped you on that ice planet? Your complaining got to be too much for them?”

“For your information, I escaped,” Shiro said testily, looking around for Lotor’s coat. He’d dropped it on the ground during the fight and now he went over to pick it back up, sliding his arms through the sleeves. They were too long for him and he rolled the cuffs up a few times, tucking them back against the shackles.

“Come along, darling,” Lotor said. He’d finished carving up the lizard and was mounting the hoverbike, fiddling with the controls as he tried to start the engines.

Shiro sighed, annoyed that Lotor still wasn’t using his name, but walked over to sit behind him. “You stink,” he muttered, wrinkling his nose at the sharp smell of blood and sweat rising from the man.

“Not as much as you do, I assure you,” Lotor said as he started the bike. He didn’t wait for Shiro to hold on before hitting the throttle and Shiro yelped, clutching at his waist desperately so he wouldn’t fall off.

Lotor set a breakneck pace through the glowing trees and Shiro had to shut his eyes so he wouldn’t be sick. When they still hadn’t crashed five minutes later he hesitantly opened his eyes again. The ground was sloping upwards gently and the trees seemed to be thinning. Finally they made it out of the treeline and Shiro gasped as he took in the wide rolling hills around them. The starlight was bright overhead, reflecting off the tall grasses and making them shine silver as they undulated in the wind like ocean waves.

Jagged snow-capped mountains rose up against the dark sky ahead of them and Lotor leaned down over the controls, nudging the bike faster as he turned towards them. They didn’t seem to be getting any closer for an hour, two, and then the fields ended abruptly and Lotor slowed as he took them up a narrow mountain pass.

Shiro had to close his eyes again to hold back vertigo as they threaded the needle between sharp drops and sheer jagged cliffs off the sides of the path.

“Oh fuck yes,” Lotor muttered, bringing them to a stop at last.

Shiro opened his eyes to see they were in a sheltered clearing with a bubbling pool of water taking up most of the space. It was steaming and smelled of sulfur, but as a result the clearing was pleasantly warm.

“Dinner _and_ a hot bath, this is turning out to be my lucky day,” Lotor said, shutting down the engines and climbing off the bike. “Get some firewood,” he ordered, waving vaguely towards the cliff wall where a few dried out scraggly trees clung desperately to the stone.

Shiro trudged over, his knees feeling a little shaky, and ripped the small trees away from the cliff. He returned to the bike and sat on the sparse grass before breaking the dried wood into smaller pieces and arranging a fire. He stuck his Galra hand in the center, activating it and waiting for the wood to catch before pulling away.

Lotor was doing something with the lizard meat, rubbing it with a rocky white powder, maybe salt, and what looked like dried herbs before wrapping it up in something like a leather cover.

“Shove this into the fire for me,” he said, holding the parcel out. Shiro took it and did as he was told.

“What now?” Shiro asked, staring into the flames.

“Now I’m going to wash,” Lotor said with a grin. “I recommend you do the same.”

“I’m fine,” Shiro said, crossing his arms over his chest. He wasn’t about to get naked in front of a stranger, much less someone holding him prisoner. Lotor seemed to have no such reservations as he stood and casually peeled his clothing off, dropping it all into a haphazard pile.

Shiro blushed and looked away, trying not to stare at Lotor’s powerful body suddenly on full display.

“Suit yourself,” Lotor said, raising his hands to pull his hair out of its ponytail and letting it fall down around his shoulders in greasy bloodied locks. He turned and strode over to the pool, sinking into the water with a satisfied groan. “Bliss!” he moaned. “You don’t know what you’re missing.”

Shiro couldn’t help staring as Lotor splashed around in the hot spring like a delighted child. Meanwhile he was sitting in his own stink, huddling in a dirty coat. The thought of bathing- in hot water no less- was appealing enough that he found himself seriously considering it. Was it really such a terrible idea? He frowned, watching as Lotor dunked his head and scrubbed at his hair.

“Fine,” he muttered, standing to get undressed.

Lotor turned at the movement, staring unabashedly.

“If you’re coming over here, darling- bring the soap,” he called out. “It’s in one of the bike’s saddlebags- the one closest to you.”

Shiro paused, crossing his arms and glaring at him. “If you want something from me you’ll ask nicely. You know my name- use it.”

“Don’t make me regret dragging you out of that rebel base,” Lotor said dangerously, his eyebrows drawing down into a frown.

Shiro only glared harder, standing silently.

“Fine,” Lotor said at last, rolling his eyes. “Would you please bring over the soap, _Shiro_ , my lord, my prince, my darling fusspot. It would please me so if you could do this simple favor for me, even though I am but a humble servant who wilts in your esteemed presence-”

“Alright, stop it,” Shiro cut him off, searching through the saddlebag to the sound of Lotor’s sharp laughter. “I’m not fussy,” he grumbled, “you’re just an asshole.” He threw the soap across the clearing a little too hard for a friendly toss only for Lotor to catch it easily.

“Thank you, kind sir!” Lotor called out, saluting him before bending to lather his hair.

Shiro finished undressing, dropping his prison rags to the ground before turning and stepping into the pool. Lotor watched him openly, running his eyes down Shiro’s body with naked hunger. Shiro shivered as he slipped into the water. Maybe this had been a mistake.

“Well look at you,” Lotor said, running his fingers through his silky hair, silver in the starlight. “Not too hard on the eyes, are you?”

Shiro sank down to his chin, wrapping his arms around himself nervously. The water was hot and pleasant, bubbling faintly against his skin. It made the burn on his thigh sting with heat, but it was mild enough he could ignore the pain in favor of the pleasure of everything else. He felt his sore muscles unknotting and relaxing almost despite himself- and yet Lotor was staring at him dark eyed from across the pool and he shivered.

“Don’t try anything,” Shiro said firmly. “Don’t even think about it.”

“I’ll think about what I like,” Lotor said with a predatory grin. “But rest assured, I won’t lay hands on you, darling. Not if you don’t want me to. Catch-”

He tossed the soap Shiro’s way and he only managed to catch it by instinct. “What do you want me for, anyway?” Shiro asked as he slowly started to wash, trying not to blush at the way Lotor still watched him.

“I’m looking to break into a Galra facility,” he said easily. “Your arm should allow me to interface with the systems and get past the security measures.”

“That’s all?” Shiro asked in surprise.

“That’s all,” Lotor said, but Shiro found himself hesitant to believe him.

“You know you could have just asked me, right? I would have agreed to help you without you taking me prisoner.”

“That’s ridiculous,” Lotor scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Why would you do that?”

“Why wouldn’t I? Obviously I’m no friend to the Galra.”

“You’d be a fool to help a stranger. For all you know my aims are entirely counter to your own.”

“If you’re trying to take down the Galra, I think our _aims_ are perfectly aligned.”

“See, there you go-” Lotor said with a shrug. “Making assumptions. I never said I wanted to take down the Galra, did I? Just that I wanted to break into a facility. You have no idea who I am or what I’m trying to do, and so you should most certainly not help me with anything I ask. Which is of course why I’ve given you no choice in the matter.”

“So what are you trying to do then?” Shiro asked, rinsing the soap out of his hair.

“Any number of things,” Lotor said mildly. “None of which I intend to explain to you.” He climbed out of the water and stretched with a groan, walking over to the fire and gathering his and Shiro’s clothes before returning to sit at the edge of the pool, still naked. “Are you finished with the soap?”

“Yeah,” Shiro said, tossing it over to him. He watched with interest as Lotor systematically washed their clothes in the pool before setting it all out to dry on the warm rocks. His body was covered in old scars, Shiro would have known he was a warrior even if he hadn’t seen him fight. And yet he scrubbed their clothes easily and with no reservations, like a man used to the mundane tasks of taking care of himself.

“How long have you been on your own?” Shiro asked.

Lotor looked over at him curiously. “What makes you think I’m on my own?”

“I don’t know. You just- you seem like you’re not around other people too often.”

“Is that a disparaging comment about my conversational style?”

“I wouldn’t consider being a rude condescending asshole a _style_ ,” Shiro muttered.

“I’ll have you know most people find me delightful,” Lotor said, smiling faintly.

“I’m sure you don’t keep most people shackled,” Shiro said, raising his wrists demonstrably.

“Please, you’re only a little shackled- as per your request. I’ve been quite accommodating to you, in all.”

“Hmm,” Shiro said, staring at his hands. His fingers were getting pruney and he was starting to feel a little lightheaded with the heat. It was time to get out. “What are we supposed to wear now that you’ve gotten all our clothes wet?”

“I think you mean- thank you so much for washing all our clothes, dear Lotor. You are true hero and I am forever in your debt.”

“No, I really don’t,” Shiro said, laughing despite himself.

“I think I can manage to rustle up a garment for you, _my lord_ ,” Lotor said. “Would you like that before I serve you dinner or after?”

“Before, if you please,” Shiro said, having a little too much fun and unable to stop himself.

“Would you care for a foot rub as well, Sire?” Lotor asked, standing and walking back to the campfire to rummage through the bike’s saddlebags. He pulled out a length of cloth and wrapped it around his hips. “Or perhaps I should comb your hair for you, or maybe you’d prefer for me to kneel and worship you with my mouth, your lordship-”

“Alright, _stop_ ,” Shiro said, blushing at Lotor’s sharp grin.

“Climb out of there before you turn into soup,” Lotor said, tossing him a long tunic.

Shiro managed to catch it before it fell into the water and climbed out before pulling it over his still damp skin. It reached to his knees and felt like nothing more than a long sleeping shirt, but it was nice to be dressed in something clean again at last.

“Come over here, let me get a closer look at your burn,” Lotor said, waving him over to the fire.

“It’s fine,” Shiro said nervously, stepping closer.

“If it’s fine then you won’t mind me looking.” Lotor glanced up at him sharply, the fire playing over the muscular planes of his chest. “Come now, I won’t bite.”

Shiro sat beside him, pulling the tunic up slightly so Lotor could get a look at his thigh.

“It’s not just a burn then,” he said thoughtfully. “You were cauterizing a wound, weren’t you? It looks a little inflamed from the water, I think I may have something for you after all. Stay there.”

He rose to get a small first aid kit out of the bike’s saddlebags before returning, pulling out a canister of some kind of salve.

“Easy, _Shiro_ ,” Lotor said as he unscrewed the canister and dipped his fingers into the salve before carefully swiping them over the burn. Shiro hissed at the first touch, the salve was ice cold over his damaged skin, but Lotor was gentle as he spread it over the affected area and soon enough all Shiro could feel was a pleasant numbness. “Better?” Lotor asked as he put the salve away.

“Yeah,” Shiro said, his voice coming out oddly hoarse.

Lotor bandaged his thigh carefully and pulled away, slapping him casually on the back.

“There you are, all done. Now if you wouldn’t mind grabbing our dinner out of the fire, we can finally eat.”

“Sure,” Shiro muttered, moving to grab the parcel out of the fire with his Galra hand. He unwrapped the package carefully and had to hold back a moan at the delicious smell that rose up when he opened the covering.

“Promising,” Lotor said with interest, looking at the cooked hunk of meat between them. He grabbed a dagger from his discarded belt and cut off a small piece, blowing on it before delicately taking a bite. “Oh yes,” he grinned. “I think this’ll do just fine. Here-” he said, handing Shiro a second dagger. “Don’t try to knife me, darling- else you’ll ruin my excellent mood.”

“I already told you I wasn’t going to try anything,” Shiro said, taking the dagger carefully. The lizard meat was piping hot and it smelled delicious and tasted even better- juicy and savory over his tongue.

Lotor pulled out a wineskin and shared it readily, and for a while they ate in silence. Shiro felt oddly comfortable despite everything. He definitely didn’t trust Lotor the slightest bit, but he felt safe with him all the same. And beyond that- he was full, and warm, and clean, and not in pain.

They finished off the meat and the wine and Shiro sighed, leaning back on his elbows to stare up at the glittering stars.

“It’s beautiful here,” he said quietly.

“Yes,” Lotor said with a smile, but he was looking at Shiro.

Shiro blushed, pulling back a little from the desire he saw in Lotor’s eyes.

“I’d better get some rest,” Lotor said, standing to grab a thin blanket out of their bags. “I’ve been awake for the past two and a half quintants. You, however, have had a nice long nap recently, so you can keep watch.” He whistled and Shiro’s shackles activated, springing back to leave him stuck to the hoverbike with his arms spread wide.

“Hey!” he cried out, trying to yank his hands free but it was no use. He considered trying to activate his Galra arm to break them but decided against it, remembering the fight with the lizard creatures. He’d had the arm on then and the shackles had been completely unaffected.

“I’ll be honest, darling-” Lotor said as he wrapped the blanket around himself and lay down on the ground. “I’m dead on my feet. Can’t have you wandering around while I’m defenseless, can I? Shout if anything dangerous should come for us, otherwise please keep your pretty little mouth shut. Good night.”

He turned away, burrowing into the blanket, and within moments his breathing evened out into sleep.

“Fucking- fantastic,” Shiro muttered quietly, sighing as he looked back up to the stars. He wasn’t in the most comfortable position but it wasn’t terrible. He relaxed his shoulders and eased his back against the bike, settling in for the night.

 

* * *

 

“Wake up, starlight,” Lotor said, patting him on the cheek gently.

Shiro jerked awake and winced at the sudden pain in his neck. He scowled up at his captor, already fully dressed and in an annoyingly good mood. Shiro was damp and it took him a moment to realize it was because it was drizzling, the sky heavy and gray.

“Remind me not to keep you on watch again, you’re terrible at this.”

“Fuck you,” Shiro bit out.

“Is that any way to greet someone on a morning as fine as this?” Lotor asked, throwing his head back to take a deep breath of fresh air. He whistled and the shackles disengaged.

“Fuck,” Shiro groaned, letting his arms drop to the ground. “It’s a shit morning you asshole.”

“Any morning I don’t wake up dead is a fine morning. You’ve really got to look on the bright side of things.”

Shiro winced as he tried to rub the stiffness out of his shoulders. His ass was asleep so that was another shitty thing to add to an already shitty day.

“Your clothes are as dry as they’re going to get, so feel free to get dressed, your lordship.”

“You’re not cute,” Shiro mumbled, rising carefully to stagger back to the pool where his clothes were laid out. They were still warm from the rocks and he sighed as he pulled the prison jumpsuit back on, along with the ratty shirt and the coat Lotor had left out for him.

“How is your thigh?” Lotor asked as he stamped out the remains of the fire.

“Fine,” Shiro said automatically, but then paused and ran his hand carefully over the bandaged burn. The skin still felt a little tight but the pain was completely gone. “Good, actually,” he added in surprise.

“Glad to hear it,” Lotor said and strode over before casually opening Shiro’s coat and shoving his hand inside. Shiro froze, staring up at Lotor nervously as he grinned down at him and continued rummaging through the inner pockets. He pulled out two ration bars and handed one over to Shiro before leaning against the bike and opening the other for himself.

“Breakfast,” he said, raising a brow.

“You could have just _asked_ ,” Shiro said, opening the packaging and taking a bite.

“Where’s the fun in asking?” Lotor said with a laugh. He scarfed down his rations before kneeling by the bike and checking it over. Shiro watched as he ate more slowly.

“Water,” Lotor said, tossing him a bottle.

“Thanks,” Shiro muttered and took a deep drink.

“Alright, darling,” Lotor said once he’d finished whatever checks he was doing and mounted the hoverbike. “Hop on. We’ve got a long journey ahead of us. Tap me twice if you need a potty break but let’s try to keep those to a minimum, yes?”

“My _name_ -” Shiro started loudly.

“Is _Shiro_ ,” Lotor echoed along with him, rolling his eyes. “My _friends_ are _looking_ for me, blah  _blah_ blah. Let’s go.” He jerked his head pointedly. “ _Now_. Get on the bike.”

“You were much less insufferable last night,” Shiro said, doing as he was told.

“Yes, I know. Most people find they enjoy my company more while I’m naked. Now- are you finally ready?”

“Yeah,” Shiro said, leaning forward to wrap his arms around Lotor’s waist.

“Let’s fly,” Lotor said and hit the throttle. His hair slapped Shiro in the mouth and Shiro scowled, turning to press his face to Lotor’s back, out of the way. He was tired and achy after the fitful night but Lotor was warm and solid in front of him and the hum of the bike was disconcertingly pleasant. He dozed off and on for a while, periodically opening his eyes to take in their surroundings.

The sun shifted in the gray sky but not much else seemed to change. Lotor was steadily taking them deeper into the mountains, the air getting cooler with every passing hour. Shiro found himself not minding it too much, the coat was excellent at keeping back the chill.

“Wake up,” Lotor said, tapping him on the hand.

Shiro straightened, letting go of him to see they’d stopped on the edge of a cliff with a breathtaking view. The valley was laid out before them, the grasses that had seemed silver at night practically glowing a vibrant red even in the gray daylight. He could see the forest beyond, the trees a brilliant blue, and the still faintly smoking wreckage of the shuttle within.

“We’re almost there, we’ll take the rest of the way on foot.”

Lotor stood from the bike, stretching before he put on a mask that seemed oddly similar to what the Blade of Marmora agents wore, and pulled up the hood of his jacket, hiding his white hair.

“Come along, watch your step.”

Shiro followed Lotor up a treacherous mountain path for a while, finding himself out of breath by the time Lotor pulled them to a stop before laying down to peer over the edge of a sheer cliff. Shiro followed suit, trying to hold back vertigo as he looked down. There was a huge metal door set into the stone, stamped with Zarkon’s insignia. It didn’t seem to be guarded but Lotor narrowed his eyes and watched for a long time, as though he was waiting for someone to come. No one did.

“Alright,” he said after what must have been an hour. “I think we’re clear to move. Careful now.”

Making it down the mountain was even more treacherous than coming up had been, the path was covered in scree and there were no decent handholds. Shiro slipped more than once but somehow Lotor was always there, grabbing him by the arm or the back of the coat to steady him before he could fall. He didn’t make fun of Shiro even once, staying focused and silent instead, and that only made Shiro more nervous.

“Wait here,” Lotor whispered once they made it into the clearing before the door and went to investigate on his own. “Come,” he said after a while, waving Shiro over.

Shiro walked closer slowly as Lotor did something with the door and a sheet of metal slid back, revealing a control panel.

“I need your arm,” Lotor said quietly and Shiro pulled his Galra arm out of the coat sleeve. Lotor took hold of his wrist and casually ripped the sleeve of his prison jumpsuit away to reveal the full length of the metal appendage. “Stay still,” Lotor said and opened a hidden catch at the inner elbow, revealing a mess of wires. He hooked a datapad into Shiro’s arm and typed in some kind of command before taking his wrist and pressing his palm to the control panel.

Shiro stared at Lotor’s face as they waited, wishing he could see his expression behind the mask, but then the panel beeped and the door began to slide open.

“Alright,” Lotor breathed out, his voice shaking a little. “Alright,” he repeated, even quieter like he was trying to steel himself to go inside. He unhooked the datapad from Shiro’s arm and closed the catch, waiting as Shiro slid the coat back on. “Stay close,” he said, and Shiro nodded.

They walked into a dark cavernous chamber. The walls were decorated with elaborate relief carvings, columns and leafy vines and flowers cut lovingly into the stone. There was a reverent hush in the air and Shiro felt like they were walking into a holy place.

“A little light, if you please,” Lotor whispered, and Shiro raised his hand, activating his Galra arm to throw purple light into the room. It was so vast that the darkness only seemed to get deeper in the distance, the shadows around them suddenly ominous.

“What is this place?” Shiro asked as they walked forward. There was a tall door set into the back of the hall, framed by gigantic statues holding spears. They seemed disconcertingly lifelike, as though they could move at any moment. Shiro found himself holding his breath as they walked closer. He squinted up at the statues, frowning at the markings on their faces. They looked- _Altean_.

There was an ominous rumble and Shiro paused, looking up fearfully as pebbles and dust rained down on them. The rumble came again but it wasn’t coming from above rather than ahead, and Shiro gasped as the statues _moved_. They stepped forward as one, angling their spears downwards.

“Holy fuck!” Shiro yelped, stepping back in alarm even as Lotor pulled off his hood and mask and raised his hands, kneeling.

“Guardians,” he said, staring at the statues wide-eyed. “We come in grace, we mean no harm.”

A groan echoed through the hall, making the very walls shake, as one of the guardians took another step and pointed his spear at Lotor’s throat. Lotor flinched and closed his eyes, leaning back a little as his breath came fast and labored. But he didn’t move away either and after a moment two marks appeared on his face like Allura and Coran had, glowing a soft pink in the gloom.

Shiro’s eyes widened as he stared. He didn’t dare breathe, much less move, as he tried to figure out what the hell he was looking at.

“You may enter,” the guardian said at last, its voice coming out as a low rumble as though the very earth was speaking to them. It stepped backwards along with its companion and they returned to their spots, still once again.

Lotor let his hands fall and his shoulders sag, catching his breath.

“What- the _fuck_ ,” Shiro whispered. “You’re Altean?”

“Altean enough, it seems,” Lotor said, getting himself together enough to stand. “Come along, before they change their minds.”

Shiro looked up at the statues fearfully as they passed, and then they were through and walking down a dark passageway. Lotor pulled a piece of ancient looking parchment out of his pocket and unfolded it, casually grabbing Shiro by the wrist to bring his glowing hand closer like he was little more than a flashlight.

Too curious to complain about the treatment, Shiro looked down at the parchment. It seemed to be some kind of map and Lotor muttered to himself as he traced his finger carefully over it.

“Stay close, darling,” he said, folding the map away again and striding forward confidently. The fear he’d shown back in the hall was gone like it had never been. He seemed strong and sure as he led the way through labyrinthe-like passageways, periodically pointing out pressure plates and booby traps for Shiro to avoid.

“Here we are,” he said at last, leading the way into a large circular chamber. Daylight filtered through thin cracks in the stone ceiling and Shiro let his hand drop and the glow fade away.

“Where is here?” Shiro asked, looking around. The chamber was completely empty, the walls flat and undecorated.

Lotor cursed. “It’s supposed to be _here_ ,” he said, looking around frantically. He stepped over to the wall, running his fingers over it restlessly like he was searching for something. “Fuck! It’s supposed to be right here!”

“What is?”

“I must be missing something,” Lotor muttered, running his hands through his hair. “This can’t be all there is. There has to be _something_ -”

He seemed so devastated that Shiro’s heart ached for him despite everything. “What are you looking for? Maybe I can help.”

“How can _you_ help,” Lotor spit out angrily before sighing and sliding down the wall to sit on the ground, cradling his head in his hands. “Apologies,” he said after a while, quieter. “It’s just- you can’t know how much it’s taken for me to get here, and now to find _nothing_ -” he sighed, leaning back to rest his head against the wall, staring up at the ceiling.

Shiro looked away from him, taking in the room. Something about it seemed familiar but he wasn’t quite sure what. He squinted as he tried to figure it out. The cracks in the ceiling, the light they cast on the stone floor- all of a sudden they didn’t seem totally random, they almost seemed to trace out-

Shiro’s eyes widened and he stepped forward. The light seemed to trace out shapes that reminded him of the layout of the Castle ship’s bridge. Following a hunch he walked over to where Allura usually stood and bent down, brushing the dirt away to see a faint groove in the stone floor, tracing out a circle like the platform of the Teleduv controls.

“Hey, come over here,” he said, getting on his hands and knees to brush more of the dirt away.

“What is it?” Lotor asked, perking up a little as he stood.

“I don’t know, a circle cut into the ground. And-” he smiled. There were two smaller circles inside the larger, just where the pillars of the Teleduv controls should be. “If you’re Altean, do you have their magic, or whatever it is?” Shiro asked. “Can you sense anything here?”

Lotor stopped beside him in the center of the circle and closed his eyes. “There is… _something_ ,” he said after a moment. “I’m just not sure-”

The marks on his cheeks started glowing again and there was a faint rumble. Shiro sprang to his feet and grabbed Lotor’s arm as the circle started to rise, turning into a raised platform as two pillars extended out of the ground.

“Well shit,” Lotor said breathlessly. “What now?”

“You’re the expert around here,” Shiro said. “But if I had to guess- those look like the controls of a Teleduv.”

Lotor glanced up at him sharply. “What would you know about that?”

Shiro grinned, crossing his arms over his chest. “Oh, you want my input now? _Darling_?”

“ _Yes_ ,” Lotor said earnestly. “Shiro- please.”

“Alright,” Shiro said, blushing a little at the way Lotor was staring at him, like he held the sun and the moon and all the stars in his hands. “I mean- I don’t know exactly how it works. But when Allura activates the Teleduv she puts her hands on the pillars, like this-” he mimed putting his hands out.

“ _Allura_?” Lotor asked incredulously. “Not- Princess Allura? Darling, she’s- she’s _dead_. She’s been dead for ten thousand years.”

“Not exactly,” Shiro said, hoping he wasn’t sharing too much information. But if Lotor was Altean, surely it would be alright to tell him?

“Clearly we have a lot to talk about,” Lotor said slowly. “Later. For now-” He turned back to the pillars and carefully set his hands over them, closing his eyes.

Shiro wasn’t sure if he should step away or closer so he settled for stepping closer, holding on to the back of Lotor’s jacket nervously as the ground started to rumble below them. Dust and clods of dirt fell down from the ceiling and Shiro shielded his face with his hand, trying desperately not to sneeze. The wall before them slid open, revealing a pillar that held some kind of small object inside a glowing niche.

Lotor walked over and took it reverently, cradling the item in his elegant fingers like it was the most precious thing in the world. “ _Shiro_ ,” he said at last, looking at him with awe.

“What is that?” Shiro asked, stepping closer.

“It’s a guidestone,” Lotor answered with a smile- not a smirk or a grin but a genuine _smile_ that lit up his whole face, making him seem young and guileless. “It holds the map to Oriande.”

“Uh, great,” Shiro said as he watched Lotor tuck the stone carefully away.

“ _Shiro_ ,” Lotor said, smiling at him now. “You truly are a wonder. I’m so glad I stole you away from those buffoons and that you didn’t get crushed in the shuttle crash or eaten by lizards.”

“Thanks?” Shiro said, blushing. “So if you’re finished with me then, do you want to maybe-” he raised his wrists up demonstrably, waving his hands a little so the shackles caught the light.

“Certainly,” Lotor said with a laugh. He whistled to open the shackles and reached out to grab them before they could fall to the ground.

“Thanks,” Shiro said, rubbing at his wrists. He startled when Lotor grabbed the lapels of his coat and yanked him in for a firm kiss.

“Thank you,” Lotor said with a wink as he pulled back, leaving Shiro staring up at him flushed and wide-eyed. “Come along, let’s get out of here.”

Shiro followed in a bit of a daze as Lotor lead them back through the dark passageways and drew up short when they were nearly at the main hall. He brought his finger to his lips and that was when Shiro heard it- metallic footsteps.

Lotor put on his mask and pulled up his hood before peeking out from behind the corner, jerking back just as quick.

“The Galra are here, we must have triggered some alarm when we came through,” he whispered. “There’s a full squadron, maybe two, at least fifty soldiers and probably more outside.” He unholstered one of his blasters and shoved it into Shiro’s hands. “We’re quite fucked, darling.”

“What do we do?” Shiro whispered back.

“We run, what else? I think I can create a diversion so we can make it through the hall, we’ll split up after and meet back at the bike. Can you manage that?”

“Yeah,” Shiro said.

“On my signal,” Lotor said. He lowered his head and stood silently for a long moment. Shiro wondered what he was doing and then he heard rumbling and a low groan. The guardian statues were stepping down off their pedestals and marching into the hall, hefting their spears to bear down on the Galra trespassers. Shiro flinched as he heard screaming and blaster fire echoing sharply off the stone walls.

“Now!” Lotor yelled and sprang into action, dragging Shiro behind him.

They ran through the chaos, dodging the soldiers and sentries and Guardians. An explosion rocked through the cavernous space as a scared soldier threw a grenade at one of the murderous statues and there was an ominous crack as the cave began to collapse.

“Go!” Lotor yelled, shoving Shiro forward.

It was all he could do to keep hold of the blaster and avoid the falling rocks. But the daylight shining in from the open door was steadily getting closer.

“Go right, I’ll go left,” Lotor yelled at him. “Meet at the bike!”

Shiro didn’t have enough breath to reply as they finally burst out into the open air. There were over a dozen transport ships outside and more Galra soldiers and sentries buzzing around like bees in a knocked over beehive. They were confused by what was happening inside the cave, scared of the tremors rocking the ground below them. They were almost too distracted to notice Shiro leaving- almost.

He ducked as someone yelled and opened fire, too busy running to fire back. There were so many of them and he was suddenly alone- Lotor had slipped away. He didn’t know whether to be angry at being abandoned or happy that the odd Altean had at least managed to escape. Shiro fired blindly behind him as he ran to the edge of the clearing and slid recklessly down the rocky slope. There were soldiers following him now, dozens of them, but maybe he could still make it.

The slope turned into a sheer drop and he yelled in shock, activating his Galra arm and driving it into the stone to slow his fall. He winced as his hand caught a handhold at last, his whole body jerking painfully as his free fall came to an abrupt stop. He managed to swing himself over to a narrow ledge, panting as he pressed himself to the cliff wall and tried to figure out where to go from here. But he was trapped- the ledge only continued a short way to either side. The Galra were above, and below there was nothing but a sheer drop to the valley and certain death.

“Fuck,” he said, closing his eyes. He was suddenly buffeted by strong winds and looked up to see one of the Galra transports hovering before him, at least half a dozen sentry robots hanging out the sides with blasters trained on him. “Fuck,” he whispered, letting go of his weapon to raise his hands in surrender.

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

 

* * *

 

 

Shiro huddled into himself as he sat in the transport surrounded by Galra soldiers, shackled at the wrists and ankles and with an armband on to keep his Galra arm inactive. He felt numb disbelief at being in this position- again. His third time as a Galra captive, and his _fifth_ time as a prisoner in just the past two years.

He couldn’t help feeling like this time his luck really had run out and this was the end for him. He’d be taken back to Haggar, to Zarkon. They’d finish him off this time, cut him into pieces so small there’d be nothing left to rescue even if the Paladins ever found him again.

He didn’t have it in him to struggle as he was taken aboard a cruiser and led to a small cell, he was so goddamn _tired_ of it all. He just wanted to go home- to the Castle, to Earth. There was no chance of that now.

He could only mark the passage of time by the meals they left, spending the rest of the time laying on a dirty cot in a stupor, huddling in Lotor’s coat and sleeping when he could manage it only to wake gasping from nightmares. They’d punish him for running, he knew that for sure. He’d only seen the surface Haggar’s cruelty so far and he had a feeling he was about to be plunged into its depths.

Six meals passed- whether that was two or three days, Shiro wasn’t sure- before the cell door opened and he winced against the light.

“This is the one?”

Shiro looked up to see a Galra soldier talking to a Commander, flanked by half a dozen sentries. He squinted up at them, raising his shackled hands to block the light.

The Commander nodded.

“On your feet, prisoner,” the soldier said. “Your escort is here- time for you to return to central command.”

Shiro shivered and shrank away. He wasn’t going to make it easy for them to take him back. And then the Commander _whistled_ at him with a grin. Shiro’s eyes widened as he stared. The upper half of the man’s face was obscured by his helmet but he’d recognize that smirk anywhere.

“On your feet, prisoner,” Lotor said.

Shiro stood, his heart thrumming with hope. He bit at his lip as he tried not to let it show over his face. Lotor took him roughly by the upper arm and led him away, the clanking of the sentries’ footsteps echoing loudly around them.

“Shall we send an escort with you, sir?” the soldier asked.

“Are you suggesting I can’t handle a single prisoner on my own?” Lotor demanded sharply.

“Of course not, sir,” the soldier said, a nervous tremor entering his voice.

“Hmm,” Lotor hummed dangerously and the soldier shrank in on himself. “Is my ship ready?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Very good. I’m certain you have duties to return to- return to them.”

“Yes, sir.” The soldier saluted and practically ran off, leaving them surrounded by sentries.

Shiro didn’t dare speak as Lotor led him through the cruiser towards the hangar and a heavily armed mid-size ship.

“Vrepit Sa!” the soldiers in the hangar saluted as they passed.

“Vrepit Sa,” Lotor replied sternly and pulled Shiro up the ramp into the ship, leaving the sentries behind. The door closed behind them and Lotor grinned as he pulled off his helmet and opened Shiro’s shackles.

“Did you miss me, darling?” he asked in his familiar playful tone, arching his brow pointedly.

That was the moment Shiro knew for sure this was a rescue and he stumbled forward, wrapping his arms around Lotor helplessly as he tried and failed to stop shaking with relief. “You came for me,” he breathed out.

“Well- yes,” Lotor said, raising his arms to hold him close and carefully stroke Shiro’s greasy hair.

“Why?” Shiro mumbled into his shoulder, trying not to cry with happiness.

“Your very touching story of course. Something something friends waiting for you, blah blah blah. You tugged right on my cold shriveled heartstrings.”

Shiro laughed, squeezing him tighter for a moment before finally letting go.

“How did you even do this?”

“Let’s just say your initial appraisal of me as some sort of dirty loner was not entirely correct. Now, we’d better go. Ezor will be very angry with me if I get her favorite ship confiscated, and I fear we’ll draw suspicion if we stay here much longer.”

“Yeah,” Shiro said, grinning up at him. “Let’s go.”

 

* * *

 

The ship was well-supplied and equipped and Shiro was able to take a real shower and get changed into respectable clothes at last, although he kept Lotor’s musky coat on over top of the rest, feeling a little sentimental. Once he was cleaned up he went to find Lotor in the cockpit with his feet propped up on a console as he read something on his datapad. He’d changed out of the Galra armor into narrow trousers and a high-necked sweater, along with a dashing jacket that went down to his knees.

Shiro found himself relieved, the armor brought to mind more than a few bad memories.

“Tell me, darling- how exactly are we meant to find your friends?” Lotor asked, looking up at him.

“We send them a message and hope they find us.”

“You know the comm signature?”

“Yeah,” Shiro said with a grin.

“Be my guest,” Lotor said, straightening as he waved to the controls.

Shiro walked over and sent out an encrypted message, setting it on an automatic timer to resend every hour.

“Now we wait,” Shiro said, sitting down in the co-pilot’s seat and pulling the coat closer around himself. “I think Allura will be excited to meet you,” he said thoughtfully.

“Believe me, Shiro- I’m quite excited to meet her as well.”

“You’ll behave yourself, right?” Shiro asked, looking over at him.

“Now what is that supposed to mean?” Lotor asked, glaring over at him half-heartedly.

“You’re just- a little rough around the edges. Sometimes.”

“I’m perfectly capable of comporting myself with dignity,” Lotor said in an exaggerated aristocratic accent, “provided I’m in polite company.”

“Is that a dig at me?” Shiro asked with a grin.

“Certainly not,” Lotor said mildly, a smile playing over his lips as he looked out at the stars. “I think we’ve established by now that you’re a gentleman of the highest refinement, with only the most particular and stately tastes.”

“I’m not fussy!” Shiro said with a laugh.

“Certainly not,” Lotor murmured, lowering his eyes respectfully. “My lord.”

Shiro nudged him in the shoulder, scoffing.

“How much longer do you think we’ll need to wait?” Lotor asked after a while.

“I don’t know,” Shiro said. “Maybe hours- or vargas. Maybe days- that’s quintants. Maybe longer. I don’t know where they are, or if they’re even receiving this transmission.”

“Hmm, I’m not very good at waiting,” Lotor said, looking over at him with a suggestive smirk. “But I think I have an idea for how we could pass the time.”

Shiro licked his lips nervously, his heart speeding up a little. Lotor had made his desire quite plain and Shiro found himself returning it despite himself. Now that they were on a more even playing field, would there really be any harm in maybe- seeing where it went?

He was startled by a beep at the console and looked over.

“Incoming transmission,” Lotor said with only mild disappointment in his voice.

“On screen,” Shiro said, looking up at the viewscreen.

Pidge appeared on screen and her eyes widened in shock. “ _Shiro_?” she gasped.

“Pidge!” Shiro cried out, laughing.

“Oh my god! Hey! Everyone! It’s Shiro!”

The other Paladins plus Allura and Coran crowded into the viewscreen, peering up at him with joy.

“I told you he was alive!” Keith cried out. “I told you all!”

“Shiro- where are you? We’ll open a portal and come get you,” Allura said.

“Lotor, do you have our coordinates?” Shiro asked.

“Certainly,” Lotor said, “transmitting now.”

“Received,” Pidge said and Coran left, no doubt to enter the coordinates into the Teleduv controls.

“Hey, who’s that with you?” Hunk asked, staring at Lotor with interest.

Lotor gave them all a small wave.

“His name is Lotor,” Shiro said, lightheaded with relief. “He’s-” he paused, not sure how to describe what exactly their relationship was. “He’s a friend. He helped me out.”

“Hey, there,” Lance said.

“Hold tight,” Allura said, “we’ll be right there.”

As soon as the transmission cut off, a portal appeared before them and the Castle of Lions was coming through. Lotor’s eyes widened as he watched.

“Wow,” he whispered. “It’s even more grand than I imagined. _Shiro_.” He turned to Shiro accusingly. “You could have mentioned these friends of yours were the Paladins of Voltron.”

Shiro shrugged. “I could have. You could have asked nicely instead of dragging me around in shackles.”

“Surely there’s no hard feelings between us about that sordid nonsense,” Lotor pouted. “You can’t fault me for protecting myself.”

“I guess not,” Shiro said. “It doesn’t matter now. Thank you.” He set his hand on Lotor’s shoulder and smiled.

_“You’re clear to dock!”_ Pidge’s voice rang out over the intercom.

“We’d better-” Shiro motioned towards the Castle where the hangar was opening for them.

“I suppose so,” Lotor said, putting his hands on the controls to take them inside.

As soon as they stepped out of the ship Shiro was tackled by Keith and the other cadets.

“It’s good to have you back,” Allura said, walking over more slowly with Coran at her shoulder.

“We’ve missed you, Shiro,” Coran said, wiping a tear from his eye.

“Princess,” Lotor said, stepping forward and taking her hand before bowing over it respectfully and pressing a kiss to the backs of her knuckles. “So it’s true- you really are alive.”

“Yes,” Allura said to him uncertainly, pulling her hand out of his grasp with a faint blush staining her cheeks. “You know me?”

“I know of you, certainly.”

“And yet I know nothing of you?”

“There’s nothing much to know,” Lotor said with a self-deprecating smile as he straightened. “I’m no one, my lady- certainly when compared to someone of your esteem. I’m simply a humble explorer and a self-styled historian.”

“He’s Altean,” Shiro spoke up, surprised by Lotor’s suddenly courtly manner. Gone was the man who’d stripped down casually to splash around in a hot spring while teasing him, or slaughtered lizard creatures with blood in his hair and guts staining his sword. Shiro wasn’t sure how that made him feel, but he couldn’t deny the sting of jealousy that hit him as he watched the warm way Lotor looked at Allura. He tried to shove it away with little success.

“Is that so?” Coran asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

“Only half-Altean,” Lotor said. “I’m afraid the other half of my heritage is Galra.”

“We do not judge people by their heritage here, but rather by their actions,” Allura said firmly. “And you’ve brought Shiro home to us, so by that action you are welcome here.”

“Thank you for your hospitality. But our time together was certainly not one-sided. Your Shiro has helped me a great deal.”

“Has he?” Allura asked, throwing a curious glance over to him. “With what, exactly?”

Lotor dug his hand into his pocket and pulled out the stone he’d found in the temple. “He helped me find a guidestone to Oriande.”

“Oriande?” Allura gasped, “But that’s only a child’s tale.”

“I assure you- it’s quite real. See for yourself, Princess.”

Allura took the stone out of his hands and closed her eyes, holding it tight to her chest. The stone began to glow, projecting a star chart into the air around them. Lotor drew closer with interest, his gaze deep and bottomless. Allura gasped in surprise and jerked, nearly dropping it, and the map disappeared.

“You’re able to activate it,” Lotor murmured. “You truly do have the power of the great Altean Alchemists.”

“I- I don’t know what to say,” Allura breathed out, staring down at the stone in her hands.

“Maybe we should let our guest rest?” Coran said slowly, still seeming suspicious.

“I’m quite eager to speak with Princess Allura on this matter,” Lotor said. “I’d gladly forgo rest for a chance to discuss what I’ve found.”

“I’m- I’m quite eager to speak with you as well,” Allura said, looking up at him through her eyelashes, her flush deepening.

“I’ll come with you,” Coran said firmly.

“Yes, let’s...” Allura trailed off. “Please, follow me.”

“Certainly,” Lotor said, bowing again and walking after her without a second glance at Shiro.

Shiro definitely wasn’t the least bit hurt by that at all. He was just frowning after them because he was- tired.

“What’s the deal with that guy?” Lance asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Yeah,” Keith said. “Can we trust him?”

“I’m- not exactly sure,” Shiro said. “I mean, he kept his word to me. And he did help me even when he didn’t have to. But- I don’t know. I don’t know anything about him, really.”

“Huh,” Hunk said.

“We’ll keep an eye on him,” Pidge said. “If he does anything suspicious, we’ll know.”

“How have things been here? You wanna fill me in on what’s been going on?”

“Oh boy,” Hunk said. “You sure you don’t want to, like- nap first?”

“That bad, huh?” Shiro said dryly.

“It hasn’t been great,” Lance muttered.

“We really missed you, Shiro,” Keith said. “I missed you.”

“Hey,” Shiro said, pulling him in for another hug. “I’m back now. Everything’s going to be ok.”

“Yeah,” Keith breathed out, squeezing him tighter before letting go and stepping back, swiping at his eyes.

“How about pancakes for dinner, and we’ll catch you up?” Hunk offered.

“That sounds great,” Shiro said with a smile, draping his arm over Keith’s and Pidge’s shoulders as they walked to the mess hall.

Hunk whipped up a bunch of chocolate chip pancakes, or something similar enough, and the five of them sat down around the table to eat.

“So the good news is Zarkon seems to be out of the game, at least for now,” Pidge said.

“The bad news is- it turns out he has a son,” Lance muttered.

“Really?” Shiro asked. “Since when?”

Lance shrugged. “Since always, I guess. But he’s coming after us for real now.”

“You’ve met him?” Shiro asked.

“No,” Keith said, glaring down at his pancakes like they’d personally offended him. “We don’t know anything about him, not even his name. But he’s been sending his generals after us.”

“They’ve been kicking our collective asses,” Hunk muttered. “Especially that Acxa one.”

Pidge shivered. “She’s not as scary as the blind one- Narti.”

“You guys are kidding,” Lance said, scandalized. “Obviously the big angry one is the scariest! Keith, back me up on this!”

“Yeah, Zethrid is pretty scary too,” Keith said, stabbing at his dinner.

“Ok, what happened?” Shiro asked.

“Well, first Acxa tricked us into following her into this weird gas planet and we all got lost and nearly died,” Hunk said.

“And then Narti lured us to this ancient Altean ship that was trapped in a time rift and we almost got stuck in an alternate dimension," Pidge said. "And when we finally got out it turned out it was all a trick to get us to get a transdimensional comet for them."

“A what?” Shiro mumbled around a mouthful of pancakes.

“It’s like what Voltron is made of,” Keith said with a sigh. “So basically- he’s building his own Voltron and we’re screwed.”

“Yeah,” Lance said. “His ships aren’t even finished and they already whooped our asses when we tried to stop them from stealing a piece of the Teleduv we built to warp Zarkon’s command ship.”

“Wow,” Shiro said, slowly pushing his empty plate away. “Compared to all that it sounds like my journey was pretty relaxing.”

“Oh yeah?” Hunk asked curiously.

“Well, I was captured for a while,” Shiro said slowly. “Then I escaped- only to get captured. Then I met Lotor.” He didn’t mention that Lotor had captured him too. “After that it was pretty ok. We killed a bunch of lizards and ate them, so that was- you know. Gross. And we stopped at a hot spring for the night, and then went to an ancient Altean temple. Afterwards the Galra showed up and we had to split up, and I was captured- again. But Lotor came and got me out and we met up with you guys.”

“Well sure,” Hunk said with a laugh. “The parts where you weren’t captured sound like a blast.”

“Shiro, you have to come back and pilot Black,” Keith said, looking up at him desperately. “I’m- I know this is what you wanted, but I just- I can’t do it as well as you.”

“Hey,” Shiro said quietly, wrapping his arm around Keith’s shoulders. “I’m sure you’re doing a great job. Right guys?”

“Ehh,” Lance muttered, looking away.

“ _Right_ , guys?” Shiro repeated, louder.

“Yeah,” Pidge said.

“Yeah, you really are,” Hunk said with a sincere smile, reaching over to pat Keith on the hand.

“Listen, let’s all get some rest,” Shiro said at last. “Things will seem better in the morning, ok?”

“Sure,” Keith muttered.

Shiro gave him one more hug before standing to go. “It’ll seem better in the morning,” he repeated. “I promise.”

 

* * *

 

Shiro had been looking forward to being back, had expected to feel like he was home. But having Lotor around shifted the energy of the Castle towards something tense and trembling.

Over the next few days Lotor seemed to charm everybody- chatting up Pidge about the ship’s systems, talking recipes with Hunk, even sharing beauty tips with Lance. And of course there was Allura- they spent hours every day huddled together over a screen, talking about Altean myths and culture, strategizing about how to get to Oriande.

Shiro couldn’t seem to get away from him. He went to the training deck to try and clear his head only to find Lotor there, shirtless and unarmed as he held his own against three gladiator droids.

“He’s- quite something, isn’t he?” Allura asked, blushing as she watched from the sidelines.

“Yeah, he’s something alright,” Shiro muttered.

Lotor grabbed one of the droids and threw it at the other two, leaving them all in an untidy heap. He straightened, breathing hard, and pushed his hair out of his face.

“Shiro!” he called with a grin. “Would you care for a spar?”

“No,” he said. “I’ll come back later.”

“Suit yourself,” Lotor said with a shrug. “Princess?”

“I-” Allura broke off, her blush deepening as she ran her eyes down his bare chest helplessly. “I- certainly.”

Lotor bowed to her with a flirtatious smile as she stepped forward and Shiro turned and left, trying to keep the jealousy and unfounded anger from choking him. He’d met Lotor first- surely that counted for something? He sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

This was stupid- he was being stupid and childish. He had bigger things to worry about than a silly infatuation with someone who was basically a perfect stranger. Ultimately it was no business of his who Lotor chose to flirt with. No business at all.

So why was he so angry?

He managed to keep his feelings in check for a while, and then he woke from a nightmare and decided to head down to the mess hall to get a drink. He walked into the room to see Lotor and Keith sitting close together on the couch against the far wall.

Lotor had his arm casually draped over the back of the couch behind Keith, who was blushing furiously and wringing his hands, looking down at his lap. Their heads were close together as Lotor murmured something into his ear, too quietly for Shiro to make out.

Keith nodded jerkily, saying something in a whisper, and Lotor laughed easily before patting him on the shoulder. Keith stiffened for a moment before relaxing and laughing too, running a hand through his hair nervously.

“Am I interrupting something?” Shiro asked coldly, glaring down at them. Allura was one thing but Keith was barely an adult and seeing this- whatever it was- made Shiro shake with fury.

“Shiro!” Keith said, jerking away from Lotor as his blush only deepened.

“Hello, darling,” Lotor said easily, smirking up at him. “Trouble sleeping?”

“Something like that,” Shiro said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I’d better- I’m gonna go,” Keith said, practically jumping to his feet.

“Remember what I told you-” Lotor said. “Take it easy, especially at first.”

“Yeah, I got it. Uh- thanks.”

Keith refused to meet Shiro’s eyes as he rushed out.

“What the hell are you doing?” Shiro asked once he and Lotor were alone.

“What do you mean?” Lotor asked, reaching over to take a glass of Nunvil off the table and sipping it delicately like it was the finest champagne.

“You’re absolutely fucking shameless,” Shiro hissed. “Do you flirt with everything that moves? Stay the hell away from Keith, alright? He’s barely nineteen.”

Lotor laughed. “Easy, Shiro. I don’t flirt with children.”

“Then what the hell did I walk into? Because it looked to me like you were trying to- to- _seduce_ him.”

“Get your mind out of the gutter,” Lotor scoffed, rolling his eyes. “He had some questions for me. He’s had no one to explain to him certain- _peculiarities_ , let’s say- of his Galra biology. Poor thing thought he was defective this whole time, can you imagine? We simply had a little talk, half-breed to half-breed.”

“A talk about what exactly?” Shiro asked, narrowing his eyes.

“ _That_ is private. If he wants to tell you he will.”

“If it turns out you’re lying to me-” Shiro said, pointing his finger at Lotor accusingly.

“Darling- if I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were jealous.”

“I’m not- _jealous_ ,” Shiro said, flushing despite himself.

“Hmm,” Lotor said, arching his eyebrow and tilting his head to the side as he looked at Shiro consideringly. “Well well, isn’t that interesting.” He set his glass on the table and walked over, stopping close in front of him.

“All this time you’ve made it perfectly clear you didn’t want me, and now you’re angry my attention is elsewhere? What did you expect me to do- keep pursuing you despite a lack of reciprocation on your part? That’s really not the kind of man I am.”

“And when the hell was I supposed to _reciprocate_?” Shiro asked, balling his hands into fists. “Was I supposed to let you fuck me when you had me shackled and at your mercy? And there wasn’t exactly time after, and now you’re-” Shiro waved his hand vaguely. “Now you’re- being _impossible_.”

“I see,” Lotor said, his lips quirking up into a slow smile. “Well, you have my full attention now, Shiro. What are you going to do with it?”

Shiro inhaled sharply, suddenly realizing they weren’t exactly arguing about Keith anymore. Maybe they never had been. “Dammit,” he muttered and stepped forward to grab Lotor by the face, yanking him in for a kiss.

Lotor didn’t waste any time before kissing him back and dragging him closer, sinking a hand into his hair. “ _Finally_ , darling,” he said, pulling away. Lotor shoved him backwards roughly and he fell to the couch with a surprised grunt before Lotor was on him again, raking his hands down his chest and sides and kissing his neck.

“Oh fuck,” Shiro groaned. “Maybe we should-”

An alarm blared out and Lotor jerked back, staring up at the ceiling. “What’s that?”

“ _Fuck_ ,” Shiro cursed, standing and trying to straighten his hair and clothes. “Trouble. I have to go.”

“It’s always something,” Lotor muttered, following at his heels.

“What’s going on?” Shiro asked as he stepped out onto the bridge.

“It’s him,” Keith muttered. “The prince.”

“How did he find us?” Lance moaned.

“I don’t know,” Allura said. “We destroyed the tracker we found, maybe there were more?”

“It doesn’t matter now,” Keith said. “Get to the Lions.”

They left just as three elegant dark ships warped out of space to surround the Castle, flying in formation. They moved like no ships Shiro had seen before, impossibly smooth and agile.

“Quiznak,” Coran breathed out. “He has three ships now? We’re in trouble.”

“You’re saying Voltron can’t handle three ships?” Shiro asked in surprise.

“We barely got away from _two_.”

Shiro watched as the Lions launched and tried fending the newcomers away. But the enemy ships just ran circles around them, almost like they were toying with the Paladins instead of actually trying to destroy them.

“Magnificent,” Lotor breathed out from beside him, his eyes glittering oddly as he watched the battle with a faint smile playing over his lips.

“You could be a little less excited about our imminent demise,” Shiro said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“You’re always so pessimistic, darling,” Lotor said with a grin. “Why don’t you launch your fighters?”

“We don’t have fighters,” Shiro said, feeling useless as he watched the Lions fight and listened to the frantic chatter of the Paladins over the comms. Even Coran was contributing, his fingers flying wildly over the controls as he tried to hit the enemy ships with the Castle’s ion cannon. It was no use- they were too fast. One of the enemy ships launched a powerful energy blast at them that cut through the Castle’s particle barrier like butter and Shiro was nearly thrown to the ground by the impact.

“Why don’t you remodulate the shields?” Lotor asked, holding tight to one of the consoles so he wouldn’t fall.

“ _How_?” Coran demanded. “If you’re such an expert- be my guest!”

“Gladly,” Lotor said, looking around. “Where-?”

“That console,” Coran bit out, pointing.

Lotor scrambled over to it as the Castle was rocked by another blast. “Can’t you perform evasive maneuvers?”

“It’s no use- they’re too fast for us.”

Shiro watched as the Lions formed Voltron and the ships were momentarily distracted, buzzing around the giant robot like vultures.

“Engaging updated shield frequency,” Lotor said and the particle barrier flickered out before blazing back into life as a bright purple net made up of triangles rather than the familiar blue hexagons. It wasn’t evenly distributed but rather thicker in the areas facing the enemy ships, flickering and shifting as they moved.

“Disperse your ion blasts,” Lotor ordered. “You won’t be able to destroy them that way but maybe you can disable them long enough for Voltron to get a good hit in.”

“It’s worth a shot,” Coran said gamely.

“Shiro- tell the Paladins to pull back or else they’ll get caught in the blast radius,” Lotor said.

“Alright,” Shiro nodded. “Paladins-” he said into the comms. “On my mark- disband Voltron and get out of the way.”

_“You got it, Shiro,”_ Keith said.

Shiro glanced over at Coran, holding up a finger while he typed frantically with the other hand. Coran looked up and nodded.

“ _Now_ ,” Shiro said and had to shield his eyes with his arm at the bright light of Voltron breaking apart into five Lions.

The enemy ships were momentarily caught off guard and Coran fired the ion cannon, getting all three in the wide beam. Lightning flickered over their surfaces and they floated dead in space as the Lions came back around to engage. Shiro grinned as the Paladins finally got the upper hand but his joy was short-lived, the enemy ships were already coming back online and swerving away.

“Sturdy, aren’t they?” Lotor asked, sounding almost pleased.

“Any more bright ideas?” Coran asked as the ships came at them, firing at the Castle in unison.

Shiro couldn’t help flinching but the new shield frequency held, reflecting the blasts right back at the enemy ships. They swerved out of their formation and scattered, warping away.

_“Why did they leave?”_ Pidge asked uncertainly. _“They could have finished us off.”_

_“Maybe they didn’t know that,”_ Keith said. _“They’ve been pretty cautious this whole time. Maybe whatever Lotor did with the shields spooked them.”_

“Maybe,” Shiro said, looking over at where Lotor was staring wistfully into space. “Looks like you saved me again. You saved all of us.”

“I’m sure you could have managed just fine on your own,” he said with a shrug.

_“We’re coming back, meet in the conference room for debriefing,”_ Allura said.

“Well,” Lotor said firmly, sweeping his gaze over the bridge. “I’ll leave you all to it. Good night, darling,” he said with a wink and made his way out.

 

* * *

 

The debrief was solemn and ominous and by the time it was over Shiro was exhausted and feeling a little hopeless. He trudged back to his rooms and took a long shower before leaving the bathroom with just a towel wrapped around his hips.

He stopped short when he entered the main room, staring at Lotor lounging at the dinner table with one foot up on the opposite knee, casually flipping through one of Shiro’s few books.

“How did you get in here?” he asked slowly.

“How indeed,” Lotor said, peering up at him with a grin. He closed the book and stood, straightening to his full height. The room suddenly seemed too small and Shiro found it difficult to catch his breath. “I think we have some unfinished business between us, don’t you? We were interrupted so rudely earlier.”

Shiro flushed as Lotor advanced, taking a few steps back by instinct. He was hot all over, his exhaustion forgotten as Lotor shoved him down to the bed and pulled the towel away, dropping it to the ground.

“You like to protest,” Lotor said, pushing Shiro’s legs apart and sitting on the bed between them, running his hands up Shiro’s naked stomach and chest. “But I think you quite enjoyed being at my mercy. I think you’ll enjoy it again.”

He pulled the shackles out of his coat pocket and set them down on Shiro’s stomach with a suggestive smirk. Shiro flinched as the cold metal met his skin, his mind completely blank and filled with hazy static.

“Put them on,” Lotor ordered.

Shiro was already hard, his breath coming in quick gasps. He stared at the shackles, and then up at Lotor, grinning down at him. He wanted to- he wanted to see where this went. Was it completely foolish? He wasn’t sure. He’d been at Lotor’s mercy before and no harm had come to him. But he hadn’t chosen that, and this was so completely different.

He wasn’t quite sure what he was doing as he reached out and slipped his wrists into the shackles. Lotor whistled quietly and the latches closed with a final click.

“Very good, darling,” Lotor murmured and took Shiro’s wrists before shoving them above his head, whistling again so the cuffs stuck to the metal of his bunk. “I knew you wouldn’t disappoint me.”

He bent to take Shiro’s lips in a hot kiss, licking into his mouth firmly before moving lower, biting at his throat and shoulders, his chest. Shiro closed his eyes and groaned as Lotor took his cock in his mouth, straining against the cuffs uselessly.

Lotor was slow and thorough, exploring rather than stimulating, keeping Shiro’s hips pressed tightly to the bed while he bobbed up and down, pulling off frequently to bite at his thighs and lick up his cock. He brought Shiro to the edge over and over again only to stop and pull away, raking his sharp fingernails down Shiro’s chest and sides to pull him back from his orgasm.

“Lotor,” Shiro gasped out, shifting his hips restlessly.

“Relax, darling,” Lotor murmured. “You’re mine now, I’ll do whatever I want with you. I’ll keep you here on edge all night if I wish and there’s nothing you can do to stop me.”

Shiro couldn’t help arching up at that, his heart thundering in his chest. He gasped as he felt Lotor’s fingers exploring him, rubbing against his entrance. He tried to shift closer, mindless already, and Lotor pulled back for a moment only to return with his fingers coated in slick, pushing into him firmly.

Shiro gasped and pulled at his bonds, whining in frustration when it was no use. He glanced down to see Lotor grinning at him darkly, licking his lips. He was still fully dressed and that only made Shiro want him more.

“Lotor, _please_ ,” he breathed out, groaning as Lotor pushed a second finger inside, the slick sounds of him thrusting in and out filling the quiet room.

“Quiet down,” Lotor said smugly, “or else the others might hear you. We don’t want that, do we?”

Shiro shivered and closed his eyes, letting his legs drop open further as Lotor pushed into him with three fingers. He was aching and overwhelmed but there was nothing he could do except take it.

It lasted forever, so long that Shiro almost came without Lotor even touching his cock, just from the pressure and heat inside him, from Lotor’s fingers brushing his prostate and Lotor’s dark laugh filling his ears. But then he pulled back and Shiro opened his eyes blearily to see Lotor pulling his coat off at last, and then the rest of his clothing.

He climbed back on the bed, naked and hard, and Shiro closed his eyes in anticipation.

“Easy, darling,” Lotor whispered and then he was pushing inside, his slick cock tapered and ridged and so huge inside him.

Shiro’s toes curled and he tried to arch up for a better angle, trying to get Lotor inside deeper, faster, _more_.

Lotor laughed breathily and took him by the hips to steady him. “That’s it,” he whispered. “Take it, darling- easy now.”

He thrust in and out a few times, throwing sparks over the backs of Shiro’s eyelids.

“Come here,” Lotor said before whistling. The shackles disengaged from the bed and Lotor bent to grab him, pulling Shiro up into his lap. Shiro got his cuffed arms over Lotor’s neck, pushing his face into his hair with a helpless moan. Lotor was so deep inside him, the only thing he could focus on was the stretch and the heat.

Lotor leaned back a little, his hand tight in the hair at the back of Shiro’s head.

“I want you to ride me,” he whispered.

“I- I don’t know if I can,” Shiro said, feeling completely boneless.

“I know you can,” Lotor said firmly. “You can do it for me. Go on, darling- gather your strength.”

“ _Fuck_ ,” Shiro whimpered and shifted his thighs a little wider, tightening his arms over Lotor’s shoulders.

“Go on,” Lotor urged and Shiro sighed, and then started to move.

He couldn’t stop the moans falling from his lips as he moved over Lotor’s cock inside him. His own erection was hard and aching between them and he couldn’t get his hands down to touch himself with his wrists tied together.

“Please,” he begged and Lotor finally moved to touch him, stroking him firmly as he fucked himself on Lotor’s cock.

He buried his face into Lotor’s neck to try and stifle his desperate moans. Lotor sped up and Shiro shuddered, his movements growing more rushed and uneven, and then it was all finally too much and he was coming, spilling between them with a sharp exhale.

“Oh,” Lotor breathed out, tightening his grip for a moment before he came too.

Shiro sat in Lotor’s lap for a while, fighting to catch his breath as Lotor smoothed his hands over his back before he whistled and the cuffs sprang open, letting Shiro pull away and fall to the bed at last.

Lotor took the restraints and tossed them to the ground before lying beside him and running his fingers playfully over Shiro’s chest.

“You know, you’re my favorite,” Lotor murmured slowly. “By far, darling. You don’t have to be jealous of the others.”

“I’m not jealous,” Shiro said at last. “Not any more.”

 

* * *

 

Lotor continued flirting with everyone, but he spent his nights in Shiro’s room and suddenly Shiro felt much more at ease. Days passed, and finally Allura announced that they were headed to Oriande to learn the secrets of the ancient Altean Alchemists.

“It’ll be fine, darling,” Lotor whispered against his ear that night. “After this is done I think we’ll defeat Zarkon for good and then we can finally rest.”

Shiro closed his eyes and pressed closer, wishing desperately for it to be true.

They headed into the Patrulian Zone and Shiro waited on the bridge with the others while Lotor and Allura went into the White Hole. It took ages, but nearly a day later Lotor and Allura returned, Lotor somber and Allura flushed and giddy with success.

They left the Patrulian Zone only to come face to face with an armada- the Prince’s transdimensional ships waiting for them along with twenty cruisers.

“Oh no,” Allura breathed out.

Shiro’s heart shrank in his chest with fear- they were painfully outmatched.

“How did they find us?” Lance asked. “I thought the coordinates to Oriande were secret.”

“Where’s Lotor?” Pidge demanded.

The words were like a blade piercing through Shiro’s heart- he gasped and looked around to see Lotor was gone. He had no idea how the man had slipped away but the truth was impossible to ignore- he’d sold them out somehow. He’d traded them away to Zarkon’s son.

“We have to warp away,” Allura said, but almost as soon as she spoke the ship grew dark around them with a sad whine.

“It’s some kind of virus, he must have embedded it into our systems at some point,” Pidge said, frantic at her console. “I can’t- I don’t know how to fight it. I think it’s too late.”

“What do we do?” Hunk asked, holding his bayard close to his chest.

They all paused, staring fearfully as they heard clanking footsteps outside the door.

“Get ready,” Shiro said, feeling guilt raging through him. This was his fault- he’d brought Lotor here, he’d dropped his guard and given him the opportunity to betray them.

The doors opened to reveal three women flanked by dozens of sentries. Shiro recognized them by their descriptions instantly- Acxa, Narti, and Zethrid.

“Come quietly and you won’t be hurt,” Acxa said coldly.

“Like hell,” Lance bit out, raising his bayard-turned-blaster to point at her head.

“Have it your way,” Acxa said, tossing a small device into the bridge.

Shiro saw purple lightning flickering around the edges of his vision and then his body seized and his world grew dark.

 

* * *

 

He woke with a groan to find himself in a cell- thankfully surrounded by the Paladins and Coran, most of them still out for the count. He struggled into a sitting position only to see familiar shackles around his wrists- the same shackles Lotor had used on him. He looked around to see the others were restrained in the same way and that was when he knew-

Lotor wasn’t just some mercenary who’d sold them out. Lotor was the prince himself, Zarkon’s own son.

“Oh god,” Shiro whispered. How had he been such an absolute fucking _moron_? He’d practically gift-wrapped the Paladins for him and now they were all fucked.

“Wake up,” he said, nudging Hunk beside him.

“Huh?” Hunk muttered, sitting up.

Between the two of them they got the others awake and conscious, even though Shiro wasn’t sure what good that would do them now. There was no escaping their shackles, much less their cell, and then footsteps echoed down the corridor and the door opened at last.

He winced at the light flooding the room and the painfully familiar silhouette standing at the threshold.

“On your feet, prisoners,” Lotor commanded.

Shiro struggled to stand, scowling. “Fuck you,” he managed. “I trusted you- and you- you _tricked_ me! All of us! You fucking _used_ me! I can’t believe you were the Prince all along- you’ve been lying to me the whole time!”

Lotor looked down at him coldly. Shiro could hardly recognize him- he was dressed in Galra armor marked by blue and purple accents, his long white hair cascading down his back.

“You have no idea who I am,” Lotor said quietly, “or what I’m trying to do.” He strode forward and took Shiro firmly by the chin, glaring down at him. “Do as you’re told and you may yet get out of this alive.” He dropped Shiro’s face and turned, walking away.

“Let’s go,” Zethrid said, taking Shiro by the arm to drag him out of the cell.

Shiro didn’t resist, the others following him. There wasn’t much else they could do. The seven of them followed Lotor and his Generals through the halls into a large central chamber. Shiro glared as he stared at Zarkon sitting in a throne at the far end, Haggar standing beside him.

“Prince Lotor,” Haggar said. “You’ve got some nerve showing up here now, once you’re no longer needed or wanted. You were summoned a phoeb ago.”

“My Lord Father- I apologize for the delay,” Lotor said, stepping forward and dropping to one knee, lowering his head respectfully. “I thought after all this time I’d better not return empty handed. I’ve brought you the Voltron Paladins- and their Lions.”

He whistled sharply and the shackles engaged with a whine, dragging all of them to their knees as they magnetized to the metal floor. Shiro winced, looking up to see Haggar frowning.

“Your place is not to _think_ ,” Haggar hissed, “but to _obey_.”

“Does the witch speak for you, father?” Lotor asked.

“Enough of your insolence, boy!” Haggar yelled.

“ _Quiet-_ ” Zarkon said and stood slowly from his throne.

“My Lord Father-” Lotor said. “I’ll gladly endure any punishment you allot- but please first allow me the honor of presenting you this gift.” He moved to pull something out of his clothes, holding the Black Bayard out to Zarkon before him.

“A worthy gift, my son,” Zarkon said slowly, taking a step forward. “You may approach.”

Lotor’s breath caught in his throat and he stood slowly. “Thank you, father,” he said with his face lowered respectfully.

He walked forward until he was close enough for Zarkon to put a hand on his shoulder, looking down at him with a curl to his lips that was too cruel to be a smile.

Shiro could only stare as Lotor moved faster than the eye could see, activating the bayard and stabbing Zarkon through the chest.

“ _No_!” Haggar cried out, purple lightning running over her hands and body, and then she was choking on her own blood as a wound opened up over her throat.

She fell to her knees, sputtering and gasping as she bled out and a woman in Lotor’s orange and blue materialized above her. The woman had pink skin and an odd appendage like a tail protruding from the back of her head. She smirked as she planted her foot on Haggar’s back and pushed her to the ground.

The soldiers in the room jerked uncertainly but Acxa pointed her blaster at them, glaring.

“It’s already over,” she said. “Stand down.”

They glanced at each other nervously and then did as they were told, stepping back.

Shiro turned his attention back to Lotor, staring wide-eyed at Zarkon impaled on his blade.

“I loved you once,” Lotor said, almost too quietly for Shiro to hear. “Did you ever love me?”

“ _No_ ,” Zarkon bit out and Lotor yanked the bayard out of his chest. Zarkon fell to his knees with a wet gasp and Lotor brought the blade down to sever his head from his body.

Lotor paused for a moment, like he was in shock, and then he straightened and dropped the bayard to the floor.

“The Emperor is dead,” he said slowly. “Inform the fleet and summon the Archivist. Set a course for Feyiv.”

“Yes, Sire,” Acxa said quietly.

The moment stretched into something cold and delicate and then Lotor turned and it shattered.

“Paladins,” he said, looking past them rather than at them. “I’m finished with you. You’re free to go.”

“What?” Shiro breathed out.

Lotor whistled and their shackles opened. Shiro stood, in as much of a stupor as the rest of them.

“Zethrid- see that they make it safely back to their ship,” Lotor said quietly.

“Yes, Sire,” Zethrid said.

“Now- everyone. Get out.”

“Lotor, please-” Acxa said slowly. “You shouldn’t be alone-”

“Get out,” Lotor repeated.

“ _Lotor_ ,” she said.

_“GET OUT!”_ Lotor roared and everyone flinched.

The last thing Shiro saw was Lotor staring at his bloody hands, shaking faintly, and then Zethrid was shoving him and the Paladins out of the hall and the doors were closing behind them.

 

* * *

 

***** EPILOGUE *****

 

“He’s waiting for you in the gardens, at the Pool of Remembrance,” Acxa said. “The sentry will take you.”

“Thank you,” Shiro said.

“Speak softly,” Acxa added. “He’s still in mourning. I told him not to summon you yet, but he insisted.”

“Alright,” Shiro said with a nod. He felt odd following the sentry through the command ship like he was an honored guest. He supposed he was, or if not a guest then an ambassador. The sentry paused at a set of large crystal doors and Shiro stepped through, eyes widening as he took in his surroundings.

He’d never expected there to be something so beautiful at the heart of Zarkon’s ship- Lotor’s ship, now. He found himself standing in a large chamber, the soaring ceiling a dark dome with stars shining down from it, unfamiliar constellations and brilliant nebulas providing the only illumination.

He walked down the neat path through the lush gardens towards the sound of running water until he stepped out into a clearing dominated by a large fountain. There was a plinth in the center holding a statue of a planet that Shiro recognized as Daibazaal.

He stepped carefully over to where Lotor was sitting with his bare feet sunk into the water, draped in simple black robes. His hair was lank and messy, his back bowed and shoulders low in something like defeat.

“Hello,” Shiro said slowly.

“Hello,” Lotor echoed, his voice devoid of emotion. “I see they’ve sent only you.”

“Yes,” Shiro said. “The others, they- they didn’t want to talk to you.”

“After what I’ve done,” Lotor said quietly.

“Yes,” Shiro said, sitting down beside him.

“But you’re here, to negotiate the cease fire.”

“Yes,” Shiro said.

“You’re not angry with me?” Lotor breathed out, still not looking directly at him.

“I am,” Shiro said with a small smile. “At least- I was.”

“But?”

“But- I’ve gone over our time together again and again,” Shiro said slowly, “and I think you were honest with me the whole time- in your own way.”

“I did what I had to,” Lotor said. “I took no joy in deceiving you.”

“I know,” Shiro said. He reached out to put his hand on Lotor’s shoulder and tried not to be put off by the way Lotor flinched at the touch. “Was anything we had real?” he asked. “Or were you just using me to get to the others?”

Lotor laughed quietly. “It was all _real_ ,” he said at last. “I had no idea who you were at first, not until you mentioned the princess-” he broke off, smiling bitterly. “I never wanted- I never wanted to hurt you. Or anyone. I just did what I had to do, Shiro. I just- I did what I had to.”

“I understand,” Shiro said and Lotor looked up at him at last. “I think we can build something good here,” Shiro said. “Something strong. You and I.”  He smiled, leaning close.

“ _Darling_ ,” he added in a whisper.

  


_fin._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed the ride! Porny coda/sequel coming soon ;)

**Author's Note:**

> Find me on tumblr at [barbitone](http://barbitone.tumblr.com/)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Turnabout](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17123189) by [barbitone](https://archiveofourown.org/users/barbitone/pseuds/barbitone)




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